Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: EU Law

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many officials in their Department are working on Retained EU Law legislation.

Dean Russell: The Department is supporting the Government’s review into retained EU Law, which provides an authoritative assessment of where retained EU law is concentrated on the statute book and assists the consideration of future legislative requirements. The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy currently has approximately 53 FTE officials working on Retained EU Law (as of 9 September 2022).

Department of Health and Social Care

Health Professions: Housing

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps she is taking to help ensure that key worker housing is available for (a) NHS and (b) social care workers.

Robert Jenrick: We have regular discussions with NHS England on key worker accommodation. It is for local organisations to determine the best use of National Health Service estate, including surplus land. Key worker accommodation may be able to help maximise the effectiveness of the current estate and we are currently working with NHS England to test delivery models. NHS staff also have access to the national ‘First Homes’ scheme, established in 2021, that enables key workers to purchase homes at a discount to the market value on new housing sites, paid for out of developer contributions.

Department for Education

Home Education: Standards

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Schools Bill will give local authorities the ability to determine whether a home-educated child is receiving an adequate education; and whether training will be provided to local authority employees on making these determinations.

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if his Department will take steps to help ensure that local authorities are consistent when making decisions on whether a home-educated child is receiving an adequate education.

Jonathan Gullis: Local authorities already have the ability to determine whether a home educated child is receiving a suitable education. The measures in the Schools Bill do not provide local authorities with additional powers to monitor or assess education.The Government is committed to establishing a local authority registration system for children not in school, as well as a duty for local authorities to provide support to home-educating families. Current guidance already provides local authorities with a framework to determine whether the provision was suitable. Local authorities should have the in-house expertise to make these decisions, but if they do not then they can, and should, consider undertaking additional training.As part of the Children Not in School proposals, the Department also intends to create new statutory guidance for local authorities on how they should be implementing their duties in relation to the registers, and will also review and update existing guidance as part of this. This guidance, in addition to the measures themselves, will help toward ensuring a more consistent approach across local authorities.

Department for Education: Buildings and Land

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what surplus land and buildings the Department has disposed of in each of the last five years; who the buyer of each of those areas of land was; and how much was paid for each of those areas of land.

Jonathan Gullis: The Department purchases land and buildings for new free school projects. As of 1 September 2022, there were 653 open free schools and more than 150 in pre-opening.The attached table includes the disposal of surplus sites and buildings from 1 September 2017. These addresses relate to sites that the Department disposed of after having purchased them for new free schools, studio schools, or university technical colleges.Where sites earmarked for new free schools become surplus, the Department will always aim to prioritise alternative educational or public sector uses for them where this is possible, before considering commercial disposal.51740_table_list_of_disposables (xlsx, 29.0KB)

Department for Education: East of England

Peter Aldous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect on his policies of trends in the level of population growth in the East of England; and if he will make a statement.

Jonathan Gullis: According to the most recent Census estimates, population in the East of England stood at 6.3 million in 2021. This represents growth of 8.3% since 2011 - the highest in England and Wales. The Department recognises both the challenges and opportunities this poses to education in the region.The statutory duty to provide sufficient school places sits with local authorities. The Department provides capital funding through the Basic Need grant to support local authorities provide school places, based on their own forecast data. They can use this funding to provide places in new schools or through expansions of existing schools, and work with any school in their local area, including academies and free schools.The funding is not ringfenced, subject to certain conditions, and nor is it time bound, meaning local authorities are free to use this funding to best meet their local priorities.In March 2022, the Department announced the East of England will receive just over £68 million to support the provision of new school places needed for 2024 and just over £45 million for 2025.The East of England also received a total of just below £141 million through the High Needs Provision Capital Allocations (HNPCA) announced in March 2022. This funding is for financial years 2022-23 and 2023-24 and will help the local authority to create new places and improve facilities for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities or who require alternative provision. Prior to that, the East of England received just over £26 million through its 2021-22 HNPCA funding announced in April 2021.This funding is on top of the department’s investment in the centrally-delivered free schools programme.The Government is also providing schools with the largest cash boost in a decade. Following the 2021 Spending Review, core schools funding (including funding for both mainstream schools and high needs) will increase by £7 billion in 2024-25, compared to 2021-22. This includes a £4 billion increase in 2022-23 compared to the previous year - a 7% cash terms per pupil boost - and a further £1.5 billion in 2023-24.The East of England is attracting an extra £88.9 million for mainstream schools, taking total school funding for 2023-24 compared to 2022-23 to over £4.6 billion, based on current pupil numbers. This represents an increase of 8.1% per pupil across two years to 2023-24 compared to 2021-22 (excluding growth funding). Final allocations for 2023-24 will be announced, as usual, in December.

Church Commissioners

Churches: Repairs and Maintenance

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, what recent discussions he has had with the Church Commissioners about repair and renewal of the church estate.

Andrew Selous: The Church Commissioners and Archbishops' Council have agreed to funding of £11 million for 2023-25 in support of Buildings for Mission, which includes £2m for places of worship maintenance/repairs, and funding for up to 20 support officers to work with communities on the care of their church buildings. This is alongside a one-off commitment of £190 million (over nine years) to support the whole Church, including its buildings, in the transition towards Net Zero 2030.12,500 church buildings are listed, with 45% of all England's Grade I listed buildings being cathedrals and churches. The average annual cost for the maintenance and repairs to parish churches alone is estimated at £150 million, and the maintenance of our churches across the country is mostly financed by generous local donors and volunteers. Support and advice, including on available grants, is available from ChurchCare: https://www.churchofengland.org/resources/churchcareThe Church remains grateful for the continuation of the Listed Places of Worship Grant Scheme and the Culture Recovery Fund. Money invested in church buildings has positive benefits to the wider community: the 2021 House of Good report by the National Churches Trust (https://www.houseofgood.nationalchurchestrust.org/) found that "the annual social and economic value of church buildings to the UK is worth around £55 billion. This sum, calculated using the latest HM Treasury Green Book guidance, includes the contribution churches make to wellbeing and to local economies."The Church is committed to engaging with the Government on the implementation of the recommendations of the 2017 Taylor Review into the sustainability of church buildings (The Taylor Review: Sustainability of English Churches and Cathedrals - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)).

Churches: Vandalism

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Member for South West Bedfordshire, representing the Church Commissioners, whether he has had discussions with the Church Commissioner's about preventing vandalism on the church estate.

Andrew Selous: Acts of vandalism to church property cause distress and great inconvenience to clergy and volunteers who work hard to keep churches accessible and in good repair. For churches suffering anti-social behaviour, guidance is available here: https://www.churchofengland.org/resources/churchcare/advice-and-guidance-church-buildings/anti-social-behaviour-churchyards General advice given to parishes is that opening the building and increasing footfall into and around the Church can help.Thefts of metal and architectural stone from church property are of additional concern, and although the number of incidents is low compared to the height of metal theft in 2017-18, the severity of the incidents indicates that this is now part of serious organised crime. Advice is available at https://www.churchofengland.org/resources/churchcare/advice-and-guidance-church-buildings/crime-and-security-preventionThe Church is grateful to the Home Office for its continued support to all places of worship threatened by hate crime through the protective security scheme.Further advice is available from the Cathedrals and Church Buildings Department of the National Church Institutions: https://www.churchofengland.org/resources/churchcare

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

India: Development Aid

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much funding her Department provided to UN organisations working in India in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

Vicky Ford: The FCDO spends some of its Overseas Development Assistance (ODA) bilaterally, meaning the destination/sector for the ODA spend is specified, using multilateral agencies as the delivery channel. Table 1 shows the volume of bilateral ODA the FCDO spent through UN agencies between 2016 and 2020, that benefitted India.The UK also provides core contributions to UN agencies' general budgets, a proportion of which will have benefitted India.The increase in 2020 reflects funding to help India respond to the COVID pandemic and to provide social protection by helping to build climate-resilient infrastructure.Table 1: FCDO bilateral ODA channelled through UN Agencies benefitting India, 2016-2020Year£2016200,0002017550,0002018450,0002019513,00020201,746,000Source: Statistics on International Development

Development Aid: Food Supply

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much financial support her Department has provided to organisations based in (a) India, (b) Sri Lanka, (c) Nepal and (d) Afghanistan to help tackle hunger in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement.

Vicky Ford: In India, the FCDO provided £8.6 million in food assistance and basic nutrition support over 2016-2020, and is supporting the Samridhi Fund to invest in the farming sector and contribute to reducing hunger.In Sri Lanka, the UK provides support as one of the largest donors to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF). CERF provided food assistance through cash transfers to 21,788 people during the drought in 2017, and this year is supporting 22,034 people.In Nepal, the UK's broad development programme contributes to reducing hunger through our humanitarian, nutrition, climate resilience and livelihoods work. For example, in 2020-21 the UK provided £5.28 million to support 204,296 women and children, including through a feeding programme.Afghanistan remains one of the world's most severe food security crises. Over 2016-2020, the FCDO provided at least £50.3 million towards food assistance and basic nutrition, and has dispersed £159 million to the World Food Programme (WFP) in Afghanistan since August 2021.

Development Aid: Asian Development Bank

Sarah Champion: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much funding her Department allocated through the Asian Development Bank in the (a) 2021-22 and (b) 2022-23 financial year; and which three programmes received the largest amount of such funding in each of those financial years.

Jesse Norman: The core funding that the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) currently provides to the Asian Development Bank is to the Asian Development Fund (ADF), which provides grants to the poorest and least-creditworthy member countries that are at high risk of debt distress. The UK has pledged to provide £117.6 million to the ADF between 2021 and 2024. In Financial Year 2021-22, the FCDO provided £29.4 million to the ADF. A decision on our 2022 - 23 allocation is yet to be finalised.The above figures are core multilateral contributions to the Asian Development Bank. In addition to these core contributions, the FCDO has provided some bilateral funding to trust funds that are managed by the Bank, including the UK Fund for Asia Regional Trade and Connectivity.We do not earmark our core multilateral funding to the Bank to particular projects.

Uyghurs: Politics and Government

Sir Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what representations he plans to make to the government of China about the reports of threats to life caused by lockdowns in the Uyghur regions; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: While most countries have now relaxed Covid restrictions, China continues to operate a "zero-Covid policy" across the whole country which frequently results in large scale lockdowns in response to relatively low numbers of cases.More broadly, we continue to monitor the ongoing human rights violations in Xinjiang. In response the UK has led international efforts to pressure China to change its behaviour. We have imposed sanctions, led joint statements at the UN, taken action to tackle forced labour in supply chains, funded research to expose China's actions, and consistently raised China's human rights violations at the highest levels in Beijing.

Gaza: Armed Conflict

Beth Winter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate her Department has made of the number of (a) homes and (b) healthcare centres that were (i) damaged and (ii) destroyed during the hostilities between Islamic Jihad and Israel in Gaza between 5 and 7 August 2022.

Gillian Keegan: We have not made this assessment. We continue to monitor the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza. All countries, including Israel, have a legitimate right to self-defence, and the right to defend their citizens from attack. In doing so, it is vital that all actions are proportionate, in line with International Humanitarian Law, and are calibrated to avoid civilian casualties. We unequivocally condemn the firing of over 1,100 rockets at civilians by Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and the ongoing campaign of terror attacks by the group, which has resulted in the deaths of innocent civilians, Israelis and Palestinians alike.

Israeli Settlements

Fleur Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment the Government has made of the potential effect of the Israeli Government’s E1 settlement proposal.

Gillian Keegan: The UK welcomes the decision to postpone discussions about advancing the E1 settlement plan. We will continue to monitor developments closely. The UK urges the Government of Israel to permanently end its settlement expansion and settlement activity in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. The former Minister for the Middle East raised our concerns with Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Roll on 22 June. The UK continues to raise our opposition to settlement advancements at the UN Security Council.

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities

Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities: Buildings and Land

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what surplus land and buildings his Department has disposed of in each of the last five years; who the buyer of each of those areas of land was; and how much was paid for each of those areas of land.

Lee Rowley: DLUHC has not disposed of any buildings for which it holds the freehold in the last five years. It has not owned any land in this period. The Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has a property seal which is used by other Government departments on building and land transactions but we do not hold records of other departments transactions. For further details on these transactions please contact the Government Property Agency.

Housing: Derelict Land

Oliver Dowden: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether the Government will take steps to ensure brownfield development is incentivised by planning policy instead of development on greenfield sites.

Lee Rowley: The National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) sets out that planning policies and decisions should make efficient use of land and give substantial weight to the value of using suitable brownfield land within settlements. To support this approach we have introduced a number of planning measures including uplifting local housing need in the top 20 most populated cities to make the most of brownfield land and existing infrastructure, and required every local authority to publish a register of local brownfield land suitable for housing. We have also revised Permitted Development and Use Class rules so that yet more homes can be created and commercial buildings can change more easily between uses, helping make best use of existing buildings.To support these policies we are providing significant tax payer subsidy for the take-up and completion of brownfield redevelopment. We have set the £1.5 billion Brownfield, Infrastructure and Land Fund and the £550 million Brownfield Housing Fund. Around half the projects in the £4.3bn Housing Infrastructure Fund programme are mostly on brownfield land and a further £180 million of taxpayer subsidy has been made available to help authorities release smaller brownfield sites for housing.

Second Homes: Council Tax

Cherilyn Mackrory: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will provide a timeline for plans to allow local authorities to charge a council tax premium on second homes.

Lee Rowley: The Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill is currently in its Committee stage in the House of Commons and contains a discretionary power for councils to apply a council tax premium of up to 100% on second homes. Subject to the conclusion of the passage of this bill, it will be for councils to decide whether to introduce a premium and, if so, when it should come into effect. In order to provide taxpayers with fair warning of increased liability, any determination to introduce a premium should be made at least one year prior to it coming into effect.

Housing: Construction

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, if he will take steps with Cabinet colleagues to support the development of eco flat pack housing projects in the context of recent trends in demand for housing and rising energy costs.

Lee Rowley: Eco flat-pack housing is an innovation in housebuilding, and falls into the category of Modern Methods of Construction.The department is working across Government to increase the use of Modern Methods of Construction in homebuilding - these technologies have the potential to deliver more energy efficient homes to buyers, improve site efficiencies to meet growing demand and reduce waste.

Housing: Construction

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, whether he plans to build a greater proportion of social and affordable housing.

Lee Rowley: The £11.5bn investment in affordable homes through the 2012 - 26 Affordable Homes Programme is the largest single funding commitment to affordable housing in a decade and will increase the supply of new build affordable housing. While the new programme will deliver fewer homes than its predecessor, we are committed to delivering more homes for social rent, which takes more funding to provide given the larger subsidy required compared to other tenures of affordable homes. It is also supporting the delivery of the new Shared Ownership model, which incurs higher costs than the previous model.

Help to Buy Scheme: Greater London

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure more affordable housing with (a) two or (b) more bedrooms is available in London via the Help to Buy scheme.

Lee Rowley: The Help to Buy Scheme is currently scheduled to come to a conclusion on October 31 2022 so we do not anticipate further changes in the existing scheme before that date.Since 2010, over 2 million additional Homes have been delivered including over 598,000 affordable homes. Over 334,000 additional homes (of which 119,716 were affordable) have been delivered in London between 2010-11 and 2020-21.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Forests: Supply Chains

Sarah Olney: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has plans to bring forward legislative proposals on tackling deforestation in supply chains.

Scott Mann: We have put into statute world-leading due diligence legislation, through the Environment Act, to help tackle illegal deforestation in UK supply chains. Between December 2021 and March 2022, we ran a consultation to seek views on the detail of regulations that will implement the Environment Act provisions and published a summary of responses to this consultation on 1st June 2022. We are committed to implementing due diligence provisions at the earliest opportunity, through secondary legislation.

Customs: Expenditure

Ruth Cadbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what the cost to the public purse was of the construction of border control points in the UK in the last five years.

Mark Spencer: £200 million has been spent by HM Government as Port Infrastructure Fund. While much of this went towards the creation of Border Control Posts (BCPs), other facilities were also built (e.g. Border Force, site infrastructure enhancements).£13.02 million has been spent by Defra on the Sevington BCP, including costs for construction and fixture & fittings, in financial year (FY) 2021/22 & FY 2022/23 to August.£22.09 million has been spent by Defra on the Dover sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) BCP which covers FY 2021/22 & FY 2022/23 construction to the end of August.No construction work has yet begun on BCPs in Wales. The Welsh Government is awaiting finalisation of the Target Operating Model before committing to construction contracts.A total of £15.3 million capital, £16.4 million resource and £1.7 million depreciation has been expended to the end of August 2022 on the provision of the infrastructure, IT systems and personnel for the work necessary to carry out the required SPS checks at Northern Ireland's Points of Entry as a result of the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Dogs: Animal Experiments

Lee Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if his Department will make an assessment of the implications for his animal welfare policies of breeding dogs for animal testing.

Scott Mann: The Animal Welfare Act 2006 does not apply to animals used in scientific procedures. Protections in scientific procedures are instead provided by the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986 (ASPA). ASPA is administered and enforced by the Home Office. Every establishment that conducts work under ASPA has a standard condition in its licence that requires appropriate care and accommodation standards for animals to be applied. The standards of care and accommodation are available in a published Code of Practice, and these standards also cover the welfare of dogs bred for use in scientific procedures. The Home Office regulator inspects against these standards of care and accommodation.

Birds: Conservation

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of seabird conservation in preventing outbreaks of avian influenza in UK seabird populations.

Scott Mann: The United Kingdom’s seabirds are an important part of our natural heritage, and we continue to support actions to address the range of threats they are facing. We recognise the significant threat posed by highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) to the United Kingdom’s seabird populations and the role conservation can play in increasing the resilience of seabird populations in the face of avian influenza outbreaks. Defra has commissioned Natural England to assess the vulnerability of seabird species in light of the pressures they are facing and to propose actions to address them. We will work closely with stakeholders to understand the best way to implement and prioritise these actions in early 2023. Defra is working with Joint Nature Conservation Commitee to establish an Advisory Group to advise, recommend actions and develop guidance on minimising the impact of HPAI on wild bird populations in England and Wales and recovering populations.

Foie Gras: Imports

Lee Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Animal Welfare Act 2006, when the Government plans to publish its investigation into the importation and sale of foie gras.

Daisy Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 16 September to Question 45314 on Foie Gras: Imports, if he will set out a timeline for building a sufficient evidence base to inform decisions and any potential action in this area.

Virginia Crosbie: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to the Action Plan for Animal Welfare, if it remains his policy to build a clear evidence base to inform decisions on banning the import or sale of foie gras.

Scott Mann: The Action Plan for Animal Welfare noted that HM Government has made clear that the production of foie gras from ducks or geese which have been force fed raises serious welfare concerns and that the production of foie gras by force feeding is already illegal in the UK. The Action Plan also noted that now that the UK has left the EU, we are committed to building a clear evidence base to inform decisions on banning the import or sale of foie gras and other products derived from low-welfare systems. HM Government is currently continuing to build this evidence base. No specific deadline has been set for this exercise, and further evidence that people may wish to share with HM Government would be gratefully received.

Avian Influenza: Disease Control

Mike Amesbury: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to develop an urgent response plan to respond to outbreaks of avian influenza.

Scott Mann: Effective animal disease control is one of Defra’s key priorities. Defra’s approach to avian influenza disease control is set out in the Notifiable Avian Disease Control Strategy for Great Britain supported by the Mitigation Strategy for Avian Influenza in Wild Birds in England and Wales and in line with the Contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases of animals in England and the UK contingency plan for exotic notifiable diseases of animals. Defra’s disease control measures seek to contain the number of animals that need to be culled, either for disease control purposes or to safeguard animal welfare. Our approach aims to reduce adverse impacts on the rural and wider economy, the public, rural communities and the environment (including impact on wildlife), while protecting public health and minimising the overall cost of any outbreak. Current policy reflects our experience of responding to past outbreaks of exotic animal disease and is in line with international standards of best practice for disease control.

Animals: Exports

Alex Sobel: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has taken steps to ensure that live animal checks are carried out at the point of destination in the EU.

Scott Mann: Since 1st January 2021, the United Kingdom has put in place strict biosecurity controls on the highest risk imports of animals, animal products, plants and plant products from the EU. These controls on the highest risk goods remain in place including currently checking live animals at destination. Rules on exports of live animals from Great Britain to the EU are determined by the EU, and checks are undertaken at an EU Border Control Post rather than at destination.

Veterinary Medicine

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what most recent estimate he has made of the economic value of the veterinary sector in (a) Newport West constituency, (b) Wales and (c) the UK.

Scott Mann: The Office for National Statistics publishes the value of business sectors as gross value added (GVA). HM Government does not currently hold data specifically for the GVA of the veterinary sector in Newport West. The GVA of the sector for Monmouthshire & Newport region was estimated at £12 million in 2020. The estimated GVA of the veterinary sector in Wales was £134 million in 2020. The GVA of the veterinary sector for the United Kingdom was £4.4 billion in 2021.

Litter: Urban Areas

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to tackle littering in city and town centres across (a) the UK and (b) Romford constituency.

Trudy Harrison: In recent years we have bolstered councils' enforcement powers, such as by almost doubling the maximum fixed penalty for littering. We have also published guidance on the provision of litter bins and provided nearly £1 million across 44 councils to help them purchase new bins. We have brought together chewing gum producers as part of a voluntary producer responsibility scheme that has recently announced funding of £1.25 million to help more than 40 councils across the UK clean gum off pavements. It is the first project of the five-year programme through which gum producers will invest up to £10 million to help tackle chewing gum littering. We are also actively exploring regulatory options for tackling cigarette butt littering. We have also consulted on introducing a deposit return scheme for drinks containers. We estimate that the scheme can reduce drinks containers being littered by 85%. Further details for when a Deposit Return Scheme will be introduced will be set out in the Government response to last year's consultation. We are working towards publication in late 2022.

Plastics: National Parks

Ruth Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to help tackle plastic pollution in national parks.

Trudy Harrison: Natural England has recently updated the Countryside Code which makes clear visitors’ responsibilities in protecting the environment when accessing the outdoors, including the need to take rubbish and food waste home, using public bins or recycling if possible. We also launched the “Keep it, Bin it” anti-litter campaign in 2018 with Keep Britain Tidy to encourage people to dispose of their litter responsibly. Last year, Keep Britain Tidy made the campaign available to local authorities and other land managers for local use. Thanks to our single-use carrier bag charge, the number of single-use plastic carrier bags sold by the main retailers has fallen by over 97%. According to Keep Britain Tidy, in 2014/15, plastic bags were noted as a top 20 most common type of litter found in England. In 2020, plastic bags were no longer a top 20 item across the UK. We have also consulted on introducing a deposit return scheme for drinks containers. We estimate that the scheme can reduce drinks containers being littered by 85%. Further details on when a Deposit Return Scheme will be introduced will be set out in the Government response to last year's consultation. We are working towards publication in late 2022.

Dogs: Animal Welfare

Tracey Crouch: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of healthy dogs that are euthanised each year in the UK; and if he will bring forward legislative proposals to legally require vets to scan for rescue back up contact details on microchips and confirm the person presenting the animal is registered on the microchip prior to euthanising a healthy or treatable animal.

Scott Mann: The Department does not hold data on the number of dogs euthanised each year. We committed in the Action Plan for Animal Welfare to seek greater assurance that alternatives to euthanasia are explored before a healthy dog is put down. In 2021, we worked closely with the veterinary profession to develop an approach that works for all parties. Following these discussions, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons agreed to incorporate the principle of scanning before euthanasia into the guidance that underpins their Code of Professional Conduct, which applies to all veterinary surgeons practising in the UK. The Code requires veterinary surgeons to scan for a microchip in dogs prior to euthanasia where, in their professional judgement, it is not necessary to put the dog down on animal health or welfare grounds. In addition, we recently held a consultation on proposed changes to the Microchipping of Dogs (England) Regulations 2015 to consider whether a microchip database record should include a ‘back-up support’ field to record the contact details of a person who may offer the animal an alternative to euthanasia in certain circumstances. We are currently analysing the consultation responses and will issue our response to the consultation later this year.

Dogs: Electronic Training Aids

Sally-Ann Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the implications for his policies of the research commissioned by his Department from Professor Douglas Elliffe on the effectiveness of the training of dogs with electronic collars.

Scott Mann: The proposed ban on the use of electric shock collars controlled by hand-held devices was developed after considering a broad range of factors, including the impact of a ban. When considered alongside the academic research, the public consultation responses, and direct engagement with the sector, HM Government concluded that these types of electric shock collars present an unacceptable risk to the welfare of dogs and cats and that their use should not be permitted.Defra-commissioned research AW1402 and AW1402a revealed that many e-collar users were not using them properly and in compliance with the manufacturers' instructions. As well as being misused to inflict unnecessary harm, there is also concern that e-collars can redirect aggression or generate anxiety-based behaviour in pets, making underlying behavioural and health problems worse.We consider the peer-reviewed Defra-commissioned research to be robust. It showed that e-collars have a negative impact on the welfare of some dogs.Data from the research was published separately in two different reputable scientific journals, which required additional independent peer review exercises involving scrutiny from experts in the same field prior to publication. This gives HM Government further confidence that the results are robust.   In addition, we have considered Professor Elliffe’s independent commentary on our research alongside Defra commission research provided by the University of Bristol, University of Lincoln and the Central Science Laboratory as part of the development of our policy. The statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Dogs includes guidance and reminders for owners about their responsibilities to provide for the welfare needs of their animal, but also to keep their dogs safe and under control. The code of practice is available here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/697953/pb13333-cop-dogs-091204.pdf

Members: Correspondence

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to respond to the letter of 6 June 2022 from the hon. Member for Inverness, Nairn Badenoch and Strathspey on raptor licence applications.

Scott Mann: Unfortunately, Defra has no record of receiving a letter from the hon. Member dated 6 June 2022. We would be grateful if the letter could be sent to Correspondence.Section@defra.gov.uk and we will issue a response.

Dogs: Electronic Training Aids

Sally-Ann Hart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of banning e-collars on the number of dog attacks on livestock in England in the context of the report in the Sunday Telegraph on 27 March entitled Dog e-collar ban increases livestock deaths.

Scott Mann: The proposed ban on the use of electric shock collars controlled by hand-held devices was developed after considering a broad range of factors, including the potential impacts of such a ban. HM Government considered academic research, public consultation responses, and direct engagement with the sector and concluded that these devices present an unacceptable risk to the welfare of dogs and cats and that their use should not be permitted.HM Government takes the issue of livestock worrying very seriously, recognising the distress this can cause farmers and animals, as well as the financial implications. Data on the number, and outcome, of recorded incidents of livestock worrying is held by individual police forces. All reported instances of livestock worrying should be taken seriously, investigated and, where appropriate, taken through the courts and met with tough sentences. The Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill, introduced in Parliament on 8th June 2021, includes new measures to crack down on livestock worrying in England and Wales.Meanwhile we maintain that it is best practice to keep your dog on a lead around livestock. Natural England recently published a refreshed version of the Countryside Code, which highlights that it is best practice to keep dogs on a lead around livestock. The Code also makes specific reference to keeping dogs in sight and under control to make sure they stay away from livestock, wildlife, horses and other people unless invited. Moreover, the Code helpfully sets out certain legal requirements, encouraging visitors to always check local signs as there are locations where you must keep your dog on a lead around livestock for all or part of the year.The statutory Code of Practice for the Welfare of Dogs includes guidance and reminders for owners about their responsibilities to provide for the welfare needs of their animal, but also to keep their dogs safe and under control. The code of practice is available here:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/697953/pb13333-cop-dogs-091204.pdf